Please, Do Not Use The "M" Word When Speaking About Balloons!

The balloons in this image are made of FOIL. Over the short, 25 years or so, life of the FOIL balloon, a large misuse of the "M" word has been going on everyday. Looking back at some of our older catalogs, I see that I too have been guilty of this atrocity.

I do not believe this use is a negative for the makers of "M". I believe it actually helps to build their brand. The balloon industry has made efforts to avoid & even eliminate the use of the "M" word, however; it is very difficult to change an ingrained public habit. I have caught most my staff using it, in just the past few weeks.

Why would the balloon industry, let alone the maker of "M" want to make this change? For the industry, so the "M" guys can leave us alone?


I received an email from a watchdog group hired by "M", to examine our industry & our use of the "M" word. I was very pleased when I did a little research on the Brody's 800-4-Balloons web site & found only 17 public uses of the "M" word (F.Y.I., we have over 8,000 items on our site). I was even happier when none of those uses, was associated with BALLOONS! I immediately replaced the "M" word with FOIL in each case. The watchdog's email also noted some 400 plus times where Brody's 800-4-Balloons had the "M" word in our meta tags. We are removing these! So, if you search "M" balloons you won't find us! Brody's 800-4-Balloons is a good corporate citizen thanks to these efforts.

My web research into our industry speaks volumes about the wide-spread misuse of the "M" word. Companies have the whole word in their names! They are using it in their descriptive copy and are even purchasing the search phrase "M---- Balloons!" I would suggest the "M" people go after Google & make them stop selling anything to do with the "M" word & balloons. I am sure there is a big difference between the foil material balloons are made of, & the "M" stuff. So let's respect those differences. Our recent presidential election was all about acceptance & change, I see an opportunity for unification in the balloon industry. We do not sell "M" balloons, "warm fuzzies" & "happiness" is what we sell, no matter what anyone calls the material!


I suggest we all expand our vocabularies with better descriptive words; such as, Foil, Metallic, Reflective, Silver, Holographic, Magnificent, over-the-top, WOW, Supra-Foil (You go Qualatex), Xtra-Life (by Anagram). So get out there and sell the "H" out of these wonderful balloons, but remember, call them FOIL balloons, please. Thanks for your cooperation. Lee